Some thoughts along the way

It is important to have mentors that you can call up and work through challenges with. These people are invaluable. But I am coming to appreciate more and more the mentors that I have never met. Who are the Mentors You’ve Never Met? (MYNM)

Whenever I hear Erwin McManus preach, I am encouraged and challenged.

Whenever I read Eugene Peterson I am reminded of the value of intentionally loving and serving the community that Jesus has called me to.

When I listen to the Seth Godin “Akimbo” podcast I think about leadership and communication in new ways.

I’ve never met these three men. In all likelihood, I will probably never meet them, but it’s important to recognize the role that these kinds of mentors have in our lives.

You never know when a MYNM might become a Mentor You Have Met. I am in the doctoral program at Portland Seminary because I reached out to Len Sweet. I asked him if the topic I was interested in would fit in the program that he leads. His response was simple, “What are you waiting for? We need this!” Over the last two years I have been interacting with Len and a great co-hort of fellow learners.

Len was a writer that I began following when I was studying at Northwest University. Somewhere along the line I found his email address. I had no reason to email him for years. I was content to have him as a mentor that I never met. But at just the right time, I reached out and I was surprised by his receptivity.

Mentors You’ve Never Met may never know the impact that they’ve had in your life. I have found that it is helpful to think about who those people may be in my life. So who are your MYNM?

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday which marks the beginning of the Lenten season. This is a time to let go of something in order to focus our hearts and minds on Jesus as we approach Easter.

I have been wrestling with how I might participate in Lent this year. The thing that keeps coming to mind is pursuing simplicity. So I will be looking for things that bring unnecessary complications into my day. With so many things going on with family, church and school I need to be extra intentional about creating space and simplicity.

It will be an evolving project. Periods of fasting, silence, solitude, times when I need to say no so that I can hear the Spirit and say the yes to what truly matters.

I’ve been thinking a lot about pressure lately. Everyone faces pressure from time to time. It could be financial pressure, relational pressure, peer pressure. It seems like pressure comes in waves. We may have seasons where we feel like life is light and free and then others where it feels like everything is pressing down on us.

I have to believe that I am not alone in this.

Some of the most difficult pressure that we have to deal with is the pressure that we put on ourselves. Much of this kind of pressure comes from our desire to preserve our image. We don’t want people to think negatively about us, so we say yes to every invitation. This creates pressure in our time and our relationships. We want to look like we are doing well so we buy things we can’t afford to impress people we don’t even like. This creates financial pressure. We struggle with temptation and sin and we don’t want people to know so we keep our struggles secret. This creates spiritual pressure.

There are also sources of pressure that come from external sources. Our company is downsizing, our parents are depressing, our kids are rebelling, and on and on.

Dealing with all that pressure on our own can be exhausting. I am so grateful that Jesus invites us to come to him with all our pressures and he shoulders them for us. The worries and fears and challenges that you stay up all night fretting about … Jesus wants those.

If we try to handle them on our own we will can get crushed under the pressure. It’s because of Jesus that Paul can say,

8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10 We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11 For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. 12 So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.

– 2 Corinthians 4:8-12

How we walk with Jesus through that pressure reveals the life Of Jesus in us and through us.

I know in the pressures that I am facing right now that Jesus can be glorified. I know that the enemy would love for me to try to deal with this pressure on my own, but if I walk wit Jesus through this pressure something wonderful can come about.

But I need to trust Jesusnwith these pressures and so do you. Will you give your pressures over to Jesus?

Last Monday I discovered that my car had been burgled (I love using that word, I don’t like that I have to use it for my own experience). The thieves took my computer bag which had my laptop and my iPad. Those are two tools that I use every day. So I had to get that all taken care of quickly so that I could get back to work.

I was so encouraged as people offered to help any way they could. Thank you. Fortunately insurance really came through for us and I am (basically) back to where I started. Friends that I have known since elementary school (Megan and Justin) offered to give me a brand new iPad that they had purchased at a great deal but didn’t really have a need for. But, wow, they gave it me, and it has been a tremendous blessing.

I also saw the value of regularly backing up your computer. I have an onsite backup and a cloud back up solution. I would advise you to do likewise. I didn’t actually lose any of my projects which is great.

On Tuesday, we had an election. And it has led to all kinds of . . . interesting conversations. I have been praying for this election, and I am going to continue praying for healing in our country. Praying the the church would rise up and be good healers.

Wednesday through Friday really feel like a blur as I walked through conversations with people about the election and grace and being good citizens and good christ followers.

On Saturday I started fixing a toilet in our house. I had some difficulty getting all the matching parts as one fix, revealed something else that needed to be fixed. But I did it. Yeah, I can fix things around my house!

Also on Saturday Kathy set up our Christmas Tree. I don’t know how I feel about that yet.

Yesterday at Creekside I was encouraged as people were so kind and welcoming to people with whom they have political disagreements. Reconciliation is an ongoing worked for humanity, and I was encouraged to see that Creekside is striving to be agents of reconciliation with each other.

And now we are back to Monday. What does this week hold?

Last week had a lot of surprises. This week will have many surprises as well. How will we respond? Will we look at our challenges as opportunities to let the light of Gospel shine through us?

I am praying that the Lord would work in us and through us this week, that he would be glorified and we would see transformation.

This week we celebrated yet another peaceful transfer of power in the US Elections.

Christians are upset on both sides of the political spectrum. One candidate has a track record of displaying their values don’t line up with core values of Christian faith. The other has actual recordings that display that their values don’t line up with core values of the Christian faith. Both make claims to be Christians. So . . . this is confusing right?

This may be one of the greatest blessings that the church in America could possibly have. Because right now we have a great opportunity to show a third way, the way of Jesus.

We have an opportunity to untie ourselves from political power grabbing and focus on proclamation of the gospel through words and deeds.

We have an opportunity to be a prophetic voice to the people in power because we are no longer a voting block that one party can depend on.

The church started out as a marginalized community, they had no political power at all. But they did have the power of God’s Spirit. The church grew and thrived because the trusted in God, not in political power. The Church grew because in the midst of perfection, they put their faith on display.

The world ridicules Christians and many places have rejected our message, because that’s all it is to them, a message. They haven’t actually seen faith on display. Church, we have a great opportunity to show the world that we really believe that God so loved the world that he gave his son, so that whoever believe in Jesus might have eternal life.

On November 8, 2016 you were elected by the people of the United States to serve as our next President. In the next few months you will be establishing your team and preparing for your inauguration. It is going to be a very busy and exciting time for you. I am praying for you.

This election was very contentious. The last year and a half have revealed a lot of wounds in our nation. Racial tensions, economic frustrations, fears regarding security and terrorism are all top of mind for us right now. Ultimately, none of these things are your fault. But people are going to look to you to fix it. I am praying for you. I know that you cannot fix everything. You are just a person just like me. But I am praying that God would give you wisdom and discernment.

I’m also praying for your family. No family is perfect, and living in the public eye magnifies imperfections. Your family is going to feel the pressure of your new office in a way that few can ever relate to.

I know that American policy and the Christian faith are not always going to line up perfectly. But I am going to pray that your understanding of the Christian faith will continue to grow and that it will continue to shape your life and policy. We are all in process.

But there are some principles that, regardless of policy, should be present in all of our lives. Our motivation for service should not be power but compassion. I am praying that your compassionfor the American people, the rich and the poor, the majority and the minorities, and your compassion for those who are hurting around the world would guide your administration. Compassion is a powerful force in bringing healing. I’m praying that Jesus would help you walk with compassion.

I’m praying for patience. Not everything you want to accomplish is going to happen right away. Please be patient. Don’t be rash. As president you will be entrusted to steward an incredible amount of power. To wield that kind of power responsibly will require great patience. Please be patient.

I’m praying for mercy. Many things were said about you in the election process. Many of those things were hurtful to you and people you love. Please don’t use your power to bring vengeance. Let mercy guide your leadership. Rise above the name calling. Jesus told us that when someone strikes us we should turn the other cheek. Please practice that. Let your critics reveal their own weakness and shame and don’t engage them on their level.

I’m praying that you pursue peace. Throughout the Old and New Testament peace is one of the great blessings that God wants for his people. Peace, or Shalom, is not just the absence of war, it’s also setting things right, it’s pursuing justice for others. And while we will never be able to perfectly establish shalom in our own strength, it is something that we should all pursue with the resources that God has given us.

I am praying for unity. You are no longer just a candidate for your preferred party. You are now President of the United States of America. While your party helped get you to this office, the whole nation is looking to you to lead us all. Please lead the way in building unity. Our nation can do so much when we are actually the United States. Building unity is very difficult. I am praying your vision of America is not just a vision for your party’s preferences. Show us a vision of what our nation can be. We are a great nation, show us how we can be a greater force for good in the world.

As a pastor I promised my congregation that I would never endorse a candidate from the pulpit. But I will always endorse praying for our leaders. I am praying for you. I want you to know that while I may disagree with policies and actions, I will never stop praying for you. You are my president. You are our president.

This is my prayer for you. And while you may never actually read this (I know you’re pretty busy) I am still going to keep praying for you.

Quiet mornings refresh my soul. I intentionally wake up early because I need some slow time. When I wake up at the last possible moment and start rushing through the morning my whole day feels rushed. But a quiet, slow morning gives me time to reflect on God’s Word, pray over my calendar for the day, enjoy a cup of coffee, and prepare for the day.

When I wake up early to run I’m caring for my body, but on non-run days I focus on soul care. It’s important that we find time to tend to our hearts. Otherwise, like the garden beds we inherited, our hearts will be over taken with things that we don’t want there.

I’m writing this on Monday, my prayer for all of us this week is that we would find a time and rhythm to build soul care into our lives.

Here are some ideas

Turn the radio off as you drive to work and spend some time praying (please keep your eyes open)

Listen to the Bible (you can use bible.com’s audio Bible for free)

Spend some time outside during your lunch break listening to birds sing and reflect on how all of creation sings God’s praises.

It is never too late to start a good habit. Good habits are hard to build and maintain but they pay off in the long run.